Curbs on night-time lorries to be lifted

REGULATIONS and planning restrictions that prevent big lorries from making deliveries at night are set to be eased.

The move will please freight operators at the risk of annoying residents who will have heavy traffic passing their bedroom windows.

Ministers at the Department of Transport and Local Government think the environmental case against night-time deliveries has been weakened by design changes which makes lorries quieter.

The Commission for Integrated Transport, an independent Government agency, is to meet later this month to plan an economic study of the overvall cost of the patchwork of bans and restrictions.

A Government source said: "We think there may be a very strong case for moving these lorries in and out at night, when the roads are clear. The noise objection isn't as strong as it was, because the lorries are quieter.

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"The clean air people might even think it's better having the lorry moving at night rather than stuck in a traffic jam during the rush hour giving out fumes. What is certain is that if lorries are travelling at night, there will be less congested roads during the day."

Lorry operators face a large number of local bans and restrictions in which local authorities attach planning conditions to town centre commercial premises.